Dallas at Minnesota Betting Guide: 3 Player Props & Best Bet for May 22
The Western Conference Championship series tips off Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. as the No. 5 seeded Dallas Mavericks face the No. 3 seeded Minnesota Timberwolves inside the Target Center.
Dallas ended their series against the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday with a dramatic 117-116 victory, earning their second trip to the conference finals in the past four seasons.
Minnesota earned its first trip to the conference finals in two decades by beating the defending champion Denver Nuggets in a decisive Game 7 on Sunday. The T’Wolves were down 20 points in the third quarter before storming back for an exciting victory.
With both teams battling for a trip to the NBA Finals, which players can bettors expect to have strong games? We’ll cover that with our top three NBA Playoff player prop bets and our best bet for the Dallas Mavericks versus the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday, May 22 game below.
Minnesota Timberwolves’ Karl-Anthony Towns OVER 31.5 Pts + Reb + Ast
Minnesota does not reach the Western Conference Finals without Karl-Anthony Towns. The 7-feet center poured in 23 points and 12 rebounds in the 98-90 series-clinching victory on Sunday, playing 39 minutes in the contentious contest.
In four games against the Mavericks this season, Towns has averaged 21.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.5 assists to eclipse the 31.5-combo mark needed to cover this player prop bet.
Outside of one below-average game, Towns combined for 35 or more points, rebounds, and assists in the other three games. Expect that production tonight out of the center.
Dallas Mavericks’ Luka Doncic OVER 8.5 Assists
Dallas star Luka Doncic showed why he’s perennially in the running for the MVP award in his team’s series win over the top-seeded Thunder. The guard averaged 24.7 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 8.7 assists to lead the Mavericks to a 4-2 series win.
Now, Doncic and company will attempt to beat the Timberwolves. In two games this season, Doncic recorded eight and 13 assists for Dallas.
In his last three games, the 6-foot-7 athlete has recorded double-figure assists each game as the Thunder attempted to keep Doncic from scoring. Expect Minnesota to do the same and allow Doncic to cover this player prop bet.
Minnesota Timberwolves’ Naz Reid UNDER 12.5 Points
Minnesota unexpectedly received an offensive surprise in their Game 7 finale against Denver for their Sixth Man of the Year winner Naz Reid. The 6-foot-9 center scored six points in 90 seconds and extended a three-point lead to seven points over that span to secure the Western Conference finals berth.
Now, Reid and company will turn their attention to the Mavericks. In four games against Dallas this season, Reid eclipsed the 12.5-point mark twice. The other times he was held to nine points.
As the playoffs have worn on, though, Minnesota has used Reid less. Expect Reid to have less than 20 minutes tonight and not cover this player prop bet.
Best Bet: Minnesota -4.5
Dallas is not dominant enough to blow the game open against the bigger, more athletic Timberwolves. Their best bet is to get hot and catch Minnesota off guard with their transition game.
Minnesota is riding high off defeating the Nuggets, and the scary part of this prediction is a let-down when they arrive home for this series opener.
I expect, however, Minnesota to be all gas and no brakes in this series as the team pushes for their first-ever NBA Finals appearance, especially in the series opener.
Ernie Horn
Sports Betting Contributor
Ernie is a 25-year veteran of the newspaper industry. He spent those early years working as a sports reporter and editor, but made the move back to the digital world in 2022. Ernie covers college football and NFL betting for Hello Rookie.